Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1172262
20 letter editor HUNT SLONEM O ctober. One of my favorite months of the year, January being the other. It's a 31-day window before Thanksgiving and holiday anxiety, and the perfect month to get your home in order and repairs made and to undertake a few design projects. My advice is to call in the big guns — a designer or architect — to realize your objective. Pinterest and Instagram are great, but I know so many people, myself included, who waste months and years making folders and inspiration boards, sifting through fabric samples and paint chips, vacillating on art, and bringing home furniture on approval. Then there's all the hiring and firing of contractors, millworkers, painters, upholsterers … Some things are better left to professionals, no matter how "fun" it looks. There are serious math and negotiating skills involved, as well as a relationship hierarchy. Twice per year, PaperCity celebrates the worlds of design and architecture with the PaperCity Design Awards, which welcome entries from top firms as well as confident young design Turks. And there are always new shining lights who emerge. The October issue — this issue — is when we celebrate the winning entries. Each year, more and more pages in PaperCity are devoted to showcasing these creative, disciplined professionals. One hallmark of the Awards is the judging team. This year in Houston, the judges were Bunny Williams, Tom Scheerer, architect/designer Lee Ledbetter, and Jamie Drake and Caleb Anderson of Drake/Anderson. In past years, we've had Martyn Lawrence Bullard, Alexa Hampton, Mary McDonald, Suzanne Kasler, Mark Sikes, Robert Couturier, and many others. Their remarks on projects are always looked forward to — very witty and insightful. Look through the winning entries in 19 categories, beginning on page 85. It's better than Instagram. Holly Moore Editor in Chief holly@papercitymag.com